Hidden In The Ashes
by dawnofthetiger
Summary: Delta squad are sent to investigate unusual activity in the fallen city of Cadivus. What they find has a large impact on one of the members of the squad. Rated M for language, violence and adult themes
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first fanfic, so please leave comments so I can learn to write better:) criticism is welcome**

**I made up the city Cadivus because I didn't want to piss off any die hard Gears fans by getting the geography wrong if I chose an actual city in Sera. I hope everyone is okay with that. **

**I have an original character in this story, and when I was writing it I was trying my absolute hardest not to make her into a Mary Sue type, so if she is heading in that direction please tell me! **

**I don't own anything expect for my original character and original city, everything else belongs to Epic.**

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><p>The armadillo came to a stop on the ashen road in the midst of the fallen city. The cold wind thrashed violently against the metal of the tank and disturbed the puddles on the ground from yesterdays rainfall. The door of the vehicle opened gently and four soldiers climbed out. Delta squad stood in the centre of what used to be the small city of Cadivus, a city that was near Anvegad. The once thriving area was silenced by the notorious hammer strikes and was now a ghost town. It was believed that there were no survivors of the strikes on Cadivus until days ago when Anvil Gate had picked up radio contact from someone in the area. Delta squad had been assisting Colonel Hoffman in Anvil Gate when the transmission from Cadivus came in. Hoffman ordered the squad to investigate the area in hopes of finding the person who had sent out transmission. Marcus Fenix, Dominic Santiago, Augustus Cole and Damon Baird departed for the forgotten city with hopes of finding survivors.<p>

"_Shit,"_ said Cole as he eyed the ash remains of the once beautiful city. They had seen many cities before that had been reduced to dust after the strikes, but they never managed to adjust themselves to the tragic scenery. As they walked away from the centaur their footsteps echoed, disrupting the ghostly silence.

"Well, no survivors here, time to go," Baird said, looking around.

"We're not leaving until we find the source of the transmission," ordered Marcus before putting his finger to his ear, "Control this is Delta, we have reached the centre of Cadivus. We'll inform you if we find anything."

"Copy that Delta, watch your six. Control out."

The four men walked away from the armadillo and looked around the grey city. Each step they took echoed, making it impossible to be discreet. If any locust or lambent arrived, they would have to abandon the idea of hiding and engage the enemy. This was not a mission for the weak hearted, as no one could predict the outcome. No life forms of any sort has been spotted in this area for a long time, so the transmission they had received had shocked them all. The transmission had been nothing but static with the faint sound of a voice in the background that no one could understand. Back at control they debated whether it was worth investigating or not, and even considered the possibility that it was a trap set by locusts. It was eventually decided that the elite squad Delta Squad would have the burden of the mysterious mission.

Dom looked at the lifeless city and suggested, "Maybe we should split up?"

"Good idea. Cole, Baird, go search those buildings," Marcus said pointing toward the only buildings that weren't reduced to rubble, "Look for any signs of life. Me and Dom will cover the outside. Radio us if you find anything." The squad split up and Marcus and Dom walked slowly through the centre of the city, their fingers on the trigger of their lancers. They attempted to listen carefully, but the thrashing wind made it difficult.

"Marcus, do you actually think there are survivors here? I can't imagine even a locust surviving in a place like this."

"It wouldn't surprise me," the sergeant said in his grave voice. As he knelt down to observe some tracks on the ground, an ash statue caught Dom's attention. It was a man and a woman holding each other tightly, the man seemed to be protecting the woman. As he stared at the ash remains of the two people, he felt his jaw begin to ache.

He had been so lost in the ash faces of the two people, that he had jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder, "Come on Dom," Marcus said a soft voice. Dom came back to reality and followed his friend to place he was kneeling.

"Did you find anything?"

Marcus stared at mark on the ground and said, "It's hard to tell. The wind has blown the ashes round so much I can't tell if it's a footprint of a human or locust. The only thing I do know is that it is fresh." A shiver went down Dom's back.

Both Marcus and Dom's head shot up the second the heard a noise. It was loud enough that the wind couldn't disguise it. Two lancers were raised in the direction of the Armadillo, who's door had been opened. Neither of them moved as the waited silently for something to exit the COG vehicle, the suspense was almost suffocating. Suddenly an small woman wearing layers of clothes emerged from the vehicle. She had short choppy black hair and a pale complexion. She looked sick and fragile, her hazel eyes full of fear as she saw the two gear staring back at her. Marcus looked at her hands and noticed she was holding the rations they had brought with them and a shot gun. They stared at each other for several seconds, before she darted off in the opposite direction light lightening.

"Hey! Come back!" Marcus yelled after the girl, but he was suddenly distracted by the the alarming sound of a familiar voice.

"BOOOOOOOOM!" yelled a Boomer as he happily shot a grenade toward the Armadillo. Upon contact, the dill exploded and the ground shook.

"Ahh fuck!" said Marcus as he began riddling the Boomer with bullets from his lancer. Cole and Baird had heard Marcus yelling and had come immediately to investigate. As they came to Marcus and Dom's side, a swarm grubs started firing their weapons at them. Delta ducked behind a slab of concrete that had fallen from a building and retaliated, firing their guns with intense fury. A ticker had crawled over to the men and was preparing to explode when Cole kicked it toward a group of grubs, killing three of them. Marcus had managed to take down the Boomer, only to discover that there were two of them.

Dom rolled away from the concrete slab and began running toward an unsuspecting grub, revving his chainsaw, and slicing it into two. The warm locust blood sprayed everywhere and Dom felt a sudden rush a adrenaline. He shot down two more grubs before he was knocked off his feet by a wretch. The wretch screamed in his face before biting his armour. As Dom grabbed his gun that had fallen out of his hands after the fall, the wretch was blown to pieces. Dom looked up and saw the same stranded woman that had stolen their rations, wielding a shotgun with a cold expression on her face. A sense of amazement washed over Dom as he realized she had come back to help finish off the locust. She looked him in the eyes, and then darted off again and firing the shot gun at oncoming hostiles. Dom watched in amazement at the skinny woman, firing with such accuracy and filled with rage. He grabbed his lancer and re joined the fight, staying fairly close to the woman.

Out of the corner of his eye, Dom saw a drone charging toward the woman with a retro lancer. Using all of his strength, he knocked the drone to the ground, but the woman still yelped in pain. The bayonet of the retro lancer had clipped the side of her ribcage, leaving her with a long, gash on her side. Dom took no mercy on the drone, and shot him multiple times in the face. Panting heavily, he looked up and was relieved to see that no more locust were surrounding them.

"Wooo! Now that's how Delta squad does it baby!" Cole cheered displaying his first smile since their arrival at the depressing graveyard of a city.

"Glad all it takes is blood and gore for you to be happy again Cole," Baird said patting his friend on the back.

Dom heard a groan and turned around to see that the stranded woman had collapsed. Rushing to her aid, he picked her up in his arms and brought her toward the rest of his squad who were staring at the wreckage that was once their armadillo.

Marcus raised his eyebrow upon seeing the girl in Dom's arms, before putting his finger to his ear and saying, "Control, This is Delta. Do you read?"

"Delta this is Hoffman, did you find the source of the transmission?"

"We think so, along with a shit load of grubs. The armadillo was destroyed by a Boomer and we need pickup," Marcus eyed the girl in Dom's arms and said, "We have also have a wounded stranded coming with us."

"Stand by Delta, King Raven on its way."


	2. Chapter 2

The King Raven departed from the forgotten city of Cadivus, and headed towards Anvil Gate, fighting the winds that had begun to die down. Marcus, Cole, and Baird stared down a the grey city that was now covered in locust blood, and thought of the ash statues that stood among the chaos. A sense of remorse washed over the three soldiers, a feeling that consumed them every time they had seen a place full of statues of people who never had a chance of survival. Cole saluted the city as a sign of respect, before sitting down and closing his eyes. A medic had arrived with the transportation to take care of the stranded woman who had received a long gash on her ribcage from a locust with a retro lancer. He had removed her coat that was covered in patches and her blood stained white shirt, before he began giving her stitches while she was still unconscious. Dom felt uncomfortable for the woman, who was very young looking, and covered her chest with her shirt. As he looked at her face he realized that the raging warrior who had taken on several locust with a shot gun no longer lay before him. She had turned back into a small, fragile looking girl, who looked like she hadn't eaten in days. Her ribs protruded from her body and looked very painful. From far away, she looked like a kid, but when Dom looked at her face he saw her real age showing through. She was probably in her twenties, twenty five he guessed, but the stress of the war had taken it's toll on her body. Her hair was jet black and choppy, and fell to just below her ears. She was unusually pale and looked like she was sick, a trait that wasn't found in most stranded people because they spent so much time outside. The medic carefully rolled her onto her side so he was able see her wound more clearly, making her back face toward Dom, which made him gasp. Scars were a necessary part of life during a violent time like this, but the scars that this woman had acquired were unlike anything Dom had seen. There were many of them, and they all ran down her back, each about one inch thick. Dom swallowed hard as he remembered a former squad mate of his donning similar scars

"Marcus!" Dom yelled toward his friend, "Have you seen the scars on her back?"

Dom watched Marcus's eyes widen as he observed the destroyed back of the woman, "Their just like Tai's." The medic finished up her stitches before moving out of the way for Cole and Baird to look at the scars.

"Damn, do you think she was taken prisoner by the locust?" Cole questioned the other gears with a wide eyed expression.

"It looks that way," Marcus said, still staring at her back.

"Are the locust still taking prisoners even after we flooded them out of their tunnels? How old are her scars?" Baird asked the medic.

As Dom traced one of the scars with his finger, her eyes shot open and she gasped. She stared at the four large men surrounding her with intense fear in her eyes. The men all backed up and attempted their best not to be threatening. She sat up and held her shirt to her chest, panting heavily.

"It's okay we're not going to hurt you. We're gears and we are taking you back to our base so you can receive medical attention," Marcus said handing the woman her coat, "Do you remember anything that happened before you collapsed?"

The woman looked at Dom, then nodded at Marcus.

"What's your name?"

The woman answered in a small voice, "Dani."

"Okay Dani, we're almost at the base." Marcus told the woman. She stared back at him, before turning around putting her shirt on.

"Remind me why we're helping this stranded girl?" Baird asked the other members of the squad.

"Oh come on Damon baby, would it kill you to help out some stranded? She did save Dom from a wretch," Cole said to Baird.

"With a shotgun she stole from us," Baird replied.

"She might know something about the transmission we received," Marcus told the blonde gear.

"The thing that confuses me is that no life forms have been spotted in Cadivus for years, and the one day we arrive, we find a human and locust," Dom said, "Was that just a huge coincidence or is there something we don't know?"

"Damn this is sketch," Cole said quietly. The rest of the helicopter ride was spent in silence while the gears thought over everything that had happened that day. Every now and then one of them would quickly glace at Dani, who was staring into space and taking no notice of them. Each time one of them moved, she would flinch slightly and they would look at each other with confusion. Dom wondered why a girl who was so determined to run into battle and kill locusts, seemed so afraid of human beings. His mind raced as he attempted to think of possibilities for her behaviour.

The King Raven had finally arrived at Anvil Gate, just as the sun was preparing to go down. The four Gears immediately got off the helicopter, glad to have returned from the depressing grey world they had entered earlier that day. Dani got off the helicopter slowly and carefully, afraid that her stitches would re open, and followed the gears, keeping several metres between them. She crossed her arms across her chest and looked around at the people who were staring at her. Her heart began racing and she started walking faster, her eyes darting toward all of the people who were watching her. She wasn't watching where she was going, and accidentally walked into Dom, who had stopped to talk someone.

"Sorry," she muttered as she held her side where the stitches were and walked around him.

"I'll catch up with you later Andrews," Dom said to the other person before he caught up to Dani "Thanks," he told her with a weak smile.

"For what?" She asked him in her small voice, refusing to look at him.

"For saving me from that wretch."

"You're welcome," she said as she raised her head, her hazel eyes staring into his own, "Thank you for saving me."

"You're welcome," he replied, his smile becoming bigger. As she looked away from him, Dom saw a small smile creep up onto her face for few seconds. They walked into the building together and were bombarded with looks of amazement from the other members of the squad. The girl that seemed to fear any contact with human beings, was walking close to Dom's side. Colonel Hoffman and Bernadette Mataki came over to the gears and watched as Dom stood behind the woman in a protective manner. Marcus debriefed the two older soldiers on everything that had happened at Cadivus, and watched as their faces showed intense confusion. They had expected contact from either humans or locust, but not both at the same time.

Hoffman looked at Marcus and asked, "No lambent?"

"No, just locust."

"We've heard rumours that all the Locust that survived the floods have been living above ground as savages. Maybe that could explain why they were there," Hoffman suggested.

As Marcus and Hoffman talked, Dani noticed her vision going blurry. A ringing noise in her ears grew louder with each second and became deafening. The ground beneath her was shaking and her legs couldn't hold her weight any longer. She fell to the cold floor and felt as if she was suffocating.

Then blackness.

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><p><strong>Sorry it's not the most interesting chapter, I tried my hardest to make it as interesting as possible. Please leave reviews :)<strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**This chapter centres around Dani the most. Please review this chapter with opinions of my original character, I would like to know if I am going in the right direction with her. Enjoy:)**

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><p>Dani opened her eyes slowly and was blinded by the bright lights of the white hospital room. She was in the midst of utter chaos, medics running around trying to save the fading lives of wounded soldiers. The rusty smell of blood filled her nostrils and cold sweat began dripping down her back. In the bed across from her a man had begun screaming at the stop of his lungs, begging the medics to make the pain go away. Machines beeped loudly and medics had to yell at one another to be heard over the sound of the moaning patients. The room was becoming smaller, and sense of claustrophobia crept over her and made her feel as if she was suffocating. She began hyperventilating as she stared at the dirty ceiling of the hospital, attempting to distract herself from the commotion. The machine she was connected to began to beep loudly and caught the attention of an elderly doctor. The doctor came over and observed the monitor and then stared at Dani, making her feel uncomfortable.<p>

"Janson! Patient number 43 is stable enough to be moved to isolation!" he yelled at a nurse before moving onto his next patient who was suffering from gunshot wounds. The nurse quickly came over to Dani's bed, helped her onto her feet and gave her support as her legs shook beneath her.

"Come on, you can do it," the nurse said in a kind voice, "We're just moving you to your own quarters so that someone else can have the bed. You've improved enough that you don't need constant supervision. Plus it will help your social anxiety."

Dani gave the nurse a confused look, before walking with her toward the exit of the hospital. Dani was wearing a hospital gown that made her feel vulnerable and weak. Her breathing had almost gone back to normal and her heart rate had decreased, allowing her to be able to support herself without the aid of the nurse. She wrapped her arms around herself as she followed the nurse toward a wooden door with cracks on it. The door made a loud screeching noise that disturbed the silence of the empty hallway. They both entered the dark room furnished with a large bed, fit for someone who was the size of a gear. There were no windows, just a small lamp that lay on the floor beside the bed acting as the only light source.

"The bathroom is right down the hall to the left. We have some clothes here for you, child's size, but I think they'll fit your physique. Rations have been placed on the bed and you've been ordered to eat as much as possible since malnutrition is believed to be to cause of your collapse. There is an intercom beside the door that links to the hospital that you can use anytime you feel ill. And, I think that's about it!" the nurse said cheerfully waiting for Dani's response, who just nodded weakly. The nurse frowned and turned toward the door, before saying, "Oh I almost forgot, Sergeant Fenix and Colonel Hoffman said they needed to talk to you."

Dani sat down on the rock hard bed and watched as nurse exited the room without so much as looking back. She was used to people doing anything to avoid her, she wasn't a pleasant person to be around. She sat in silence for several minutes, enjoying the rare peace and isolation that she wasn't accustomed to. She thought about everything that had happened before her collapse, the locust fight, the gears taking her back to their base, it all seemed so unreal. As she revisited her memories, the image a muscular tan man with a slight beard appeared before her. His brown eyes stared back at her from her own memories and a warm feeling absorbed her. She couldn't understand what it was about him that made her feel this way. He is a good man, she told her self. Not many Gears would rescue a stranded, especially one that had just stolen from them. But there was something else about him, something that made him stand out from the others. She thought about the look on his face when he was sitting in the Helicopter. It was a mix of stress, anguish and guilt, an expression she had become used to seeing in the mirror. Her jaw began to ache.

In fear that letting her mind wander would cause her to have a mental breakdown, Dani got up from the bed and changed into her civilian clothes. The pants were a close fit, but the shirt hung off of her small chest. She put on a jacket that had the COG emblem above the left breast and her own black boots. She wished she had a headband to push back her shaggy black hair which covered part of her right eye. Once she had finished getting ready, she convinced herself to leave the sanctuary of a room and search for Sergeant Fenix and Colonel Hoffman. She scanned the room looking for anything she could use as a weapon in case things got ugly, but found nothing. She held her breath as she exited the dark room and entered the deserted hallway.

She could hear the agonizing screams of the man that was in the bed across from her from the hallway. His screeches echoed through the empty corridor, creating an eerie atmosphere. As she walked passed the windows of the hospital she saw her reflection in the glass. From far away she didn't look like a twenty three year old, she looked like a teenager, a boy even. She didn't have any voluptuous curves to make her appear more feminine or luscious long locks. She was unnaturally skinny because food was so hard to come by during times like these and her hair had fallen out years ago because of stress. Her only feature that she was remotely proud of were her warm hazel eyes that had traces of blue on the outside of the iris. Every time she saw her reflection, she saw the ghost of a once attractive person who was destroyed by war.

A medic on the other side of the window looked back at her with confusion, reminding her that she wasn't looking at a mirror. Feeling slightly embarrassed, she turned her heel and walked down the hallway and went through a large door. After five hallways and 3 doors, she had come to the conclusion that she was lost. Dani stopped in her tracks and tried to remember how to get back to her room when a familiar voice called her name.

"Dani?" Dom said watching the young woman jump at the sound of her name. She turned toward him and looked at him with a wide eyed expression. No words escaped her mouth as she stared at the soldier.

"They want you at the main building. I can show you the way," he said smiling at her.

Dani's face show no traces of emotion as she said, "Okay." She and Dom began walking together, Dom taking the lead. Dani desperately wanted to be able talk to him, not just to connect with him, but to learn about him. She found him utterly fascinating, yet mysterious. But after spending so many years alone, her social skills weren't exactly the best.

"What's your name?" she asked using all of her courage.

"Dom," he replied happy to get something out of her. She wasn't sure how to continue the conversation, so they endured an awkward silence for a minute.

"It's short for Dominic," he said, giving conversation another attempt, "Is Dani short for anything?"

She quickly glanced at Dom before saying, "Danielle. But please don't call me that."

"How did you learn to shoot like that?" he asked changing the subject.

"My brother. He was a Gear. Well, he was training to be one," she said with a slight voice crack. Dom looked down at the young woman, noticing her tone of voice, and felt a pang of sympathy. So many people had been affected by the war that it became a natural part of life to exchange tragic stories of loved ones, but Dani wasn't natural. From her anti social personality to the haunting scars on her back it was obvious she was containing her own monsters in her past. The mystery that came with this girl was enticing, and oddly enchanting. As they walked he noticed that she had begun walking closer to him, their arms touching as they walked in sync.

When they arrived at the Control Room, Hoffman, Marcus, Cole and Baird were stood up and watched them enter the room. Dani looked around at the high tech equipment that surrounded them and did her best to contain her amazement. Having lived in destruction for a large part of her life she wasn't used to seeing technology like this. She was brought back to reality when Baird coughed loudly in her direction.

"Well boys, first thing is that your transport back to Vectes will be arriving tomorrow at 1600 hours so don't be late or else you'll have to see if them locust will let you borrow reavers again," Hoffman said while Cole laughed.

"Man you shoulda seen the look on the them locust bitches faces..."

"Cole," Hoffman said

"Didn't see the Cole Train coming! Baby if we could do that again..."

"COLE!" Hoffman yelled sternly as the Thrashball played shut his mouth, "Anyways as I was saying the first thing was transport to Vectes, the second thing was the source of the transmission."

Each member of the squad turned to look at Dani, and Marcus asked, "Was it you?"

"Yes," she replied, feeling slightly more confident with Dom beside her. Realizing she wouldn't be free without an explanation she said, "I needed food so I sent out a transmission knowing someone would have to come investigate." She felt guilty and refused to look any of them in the eye.

"Well, I'm glad we have everything cleared up. Oh wait, there was this little detail you forgot to include. The uh, what are they called? Oh yeah! The Locust," Baird said.

Dani stared at the ground while she tried to find words, "The locu-, they, they.." she stuttered feeling intense pressure from the squad.

"What, were you guys having a party? It's okay, I'm sure all of our invitations got lost in the mail," Baird giving her an exaggerated wink.

"Knock it off Baird," Marcus ordered before turning toward the young girl, "We saw your scars.

We know you were a locust prisoner."

The scars on her back had begun to itch at the mention of them and she clenched her fists. All of the soldiers stared at her intently waiting for an answer, knowing that beneath the cloth on her back lay the markings of the monsters that she would never be able to get rid of.

"They were looking for me."


	4. Chapter 4

The five gears all stared at the woman with shocked expressions drawn across their faces. They hadn't expected her to answer the question, let alone give them an answer that baffled and shocked them. Dani regretted telling them the truth the second it had escaped her mouth, she wished she could have come up with a believable lie. But now the damage was done, and she would have to endure to suspicions of the soldiers that surrounded her. She wished she had found a weapon in her room, she felt utterly vulnerable.

Hoffman broke the silence by demanding, "Why in the hell were they looking for you?"

She stared at her fingernails when she said, "Because I am one of the few people who managed to escape their torture games and lived to tell the tale." She looked up at the men and realized they weren't buying it.

"And because...I killed one of their superiors," she said, her face displaying a cold expression as she revisited the dark memories.

"What do you mean, their superiors?" Dom questioned the young woman.

"His name was Repto, and he was a high priest of the Kantus. Well respected by the other locust, and extremely viscous. He led many of the missions involved in taking humans as prisoner," Dani said, unable to stop her voice from sounding shaky.

"So you're saying you, a tiny girl, killed a high ranking locust who is, as you say, extremely viscous, and now the locust are seeking revenge against you?" Baird said, "Well her story seems solid, looks like we're finished here."

"Come on Baird, cut the lady some slack," Cole said to the blonde gear.

"Baird's right," Marcus growled, receiving shocked looks from Dom and Cole, "Just because you claim to have killed a superior locust doesn't explain why they were searching for you. When we flooded the hollow it left them struggling for their life, I highly doubt they'd continue to search for a escaped prisoner when they have so many other priorities."

She remained quiet for a minute before saying, "The locust picked up my transmission, I saw them searching Cadvius for the source while hid in the rubble of a destroyed building. It didn't take long for them to find me, my knee was bleeding and they can smell fresh blood from a mile away. One of them roughly pulled me out from the rubble and threw me to the ground. There were three of them. One of them recognized me within seconds. He must have been there during the time when I escaped. They spoke amongst each other in their native tongue, giving me the chance to throw ash at their face, blinding them. I got up and ran as fast as I could, away from the city. They chased me for a while before they gave up and left to get reinforcements. That's when you arrived. My plan was to take the food as quickly as possible and then leave, but they returned with reinforcements so fast, I still can't believe it."

The five men listened intently as Dani spoke of her dreadful experience with the locust. The frightened woman no longer appeared before them as she was replaced with a wise warrior who spoke of horror and pain. Her hands shook slightly as she revived the memories she had planned to keep hidden for the rest of her life. When she finished her story, the room was filled with complete silence.

Baird looked at Dani with apologetic eyes and asked, "Why didn't the three locust in Cadivus kill you?"

"I guess they believed that I wasn't worthy of death yet. They probably wanted to finish torturing me as their last act of revenge for Repto," she said in a low voice.

The silence that followed was uncomfortable for everyone in the room. The gears had no idea how to feel about Dani's confession, they were unsure whether they were able to even trust her. After all she was a thieving stranded who was emotionally disturbed. Meanwhile Dani was still overcome by the fact that she had told these complete strangers personal information about herself. Normally she would keep her personal life as private as possible as a way to distance herself from others. She had failed herself and now she had to leave this place as soon as she got the chance.

"Well, I guess we'll leave it at that for now," Hoffman said, breaking the silence, "Remember, 1600 hours tomorrow, not a minute later."

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><p><strong>I'm sorry it's such a short chapter :(I think next chapter will make up for it :)<strong>


	5. Chapter 5

Once they had been dismissed, Dani power walked back to her room near the hospital, fortunately remembering the route back. As she turned the corner onto the medical hallway that contained the door to her room, she began thinking of a strategic way to sneak out of Anvil Gate. Gears stood at every entrance and she would certainly go noticed by someone. Plus there was the fact that locust had now been spotted fairly close to Anvil Gate and they were looking for her. Her heart rate began rising at the thought of all of the consequences that could result from leaving the COG base, but she had made up her mind. She would not risk everyone's life at Anvil Gate and live with their blood on her hands.

She has only been alone in her room for 30 seconds when she heard a knock at the door that made her jump.

"Fuck," she muttered under her breath, her mediocre plan failing already. She decided to stand very still and hope that the person on the other side of the door would leave.

"Dani, it's Dom," the man on the other side of the door said, while the butterflies in Dani's stomach fluttered their wings rapidly, "I just wanted to know if you wanted to talk or something. I have alcohol, that always helps, I think."

She couldn't help but smile as he spoke, realizing he was socially awkward like herself, but in a much different way. Without saying a word, she went over to the wooden door and opened it to find the large gear holding two bottles of mysterious liquor.

"Welcome to my humble abode," she said feeling embarrassed when she realized how stupid that sounded.

Dom merely smiled at her and said, "Look I saw how nervous you were when you told us about your past. I take it you don't like to let people into your personal life."

Dani shrugged but was impressed with how fast he managed to figure her out.

"Anyways, I thought you could use someone to talk to because you'd be surprised how relieving it can be tell people the things you've always wanted to get off your chest. Plus, having a drink or five can really help loosen you up and make it easier to open up to people."

Her escape plan was already ruined, so she ignored her conscience and accepted one of the bottles from Dom. They were dusty and old looking, but Dani took her chances, removed the top and took a swig. It burned her throat and she made a face that made Dom laugh out loud, which made her smile back at him. The both sat down on her bed and stared at each other, waiting for the other person to say something.

As Dom opened his mouth, Dani quickly chimed in and said, "You first."

Taking a large drink from his bottle, he laughed and said, "Okay, umm where do I start?"

"The beginning," she said, "Where did you grow up?"

Dom began recounting his entire life story, talking about his parents Eduardo and Eva, and his older brother Carlos. He told her about the first time he had met Marcus and how Marcus, Carlos and him used to always hangout with each other. He included little details such as his mothers cooking and his fathers war stories that captivated him as a child. He could feel his voice shaking slightly when he spoke of the young girl that used to climb trees in the neighbourhood. He spoke of Maria with such heart, Dani could feel his love for the woman. He told her about how they were married with two children by the time he was eighteen, and how he was the happiest man alive. His eyes began to water slightly when he spoke of E Day, when he lost both of his young children. The most devastating part of Dom's story, was when he told Dani about how he had found Maria in a locust torture camp, having completely lost her mind. His voice broke off when he told her that he had to make a life changing decision, and put her out of her misery.

As Dom told his story, he observed Dani's facial expressions. He was used to seeing people give him looks of sympathy, but Dani's facial expression showed understanding. Not once did she interrupt him and give him her condolences, or pity him. She just sat and listened, taking in every word that came out of his mouth. When he explained to her that he had to euthanize Maria, her eyes widened and she slowly put her hand on top of his own. Her touch felt warm and comforting. She managed to say so much with just her actions, something Dom had learned to appreciate after spending so much time with Marcus.

She took a large swig from her bottle and said, "My dad was a gear. He fought in the pendulum wars, but he was let go after he was shot in the leg. He had a permanent limp, and wasn't allowed to fight anymore. So he took up a new hobby, drinking," she raised her bottle, "My mom was killed on E Day, so my dad had to take care of me and my brother, who was two years older than me. We managed to survive with just the three of us, but after the Hammer Strikes, we became what are known as the stranded. We lived with hundreds of other people on the outskirts of Jacinto, each day becoming a struggle for survival. My brother was seventeen when he started training to become a gear, having signed up for Operation Lifeboat. He was only trying to help me and my dad He was a year younger than required, but they still accepted him since my dad was a respected gear. My dad, my dad didn't accept help from the COG, he thought they were wrong to dismiss him after his leg injury. We stayed with the stranded, moving locations every few days, eating whatever we could find. During the night, my dad would have nightmares about his days as a gear and about E Day. He was frustrated that my mother died, and that my brother had left us to become part of the COG. One night he completely freaked out and hit me across the face with a piece of wood. I guess that was how he discovered that hurting me would relieve his stress." Dani had a cold expression as she remembered her father.

"Every time something made him feel remotely stressful, he would take it out on me. He hit me every single day, sometimes they were full blown beatings. Once he sat on my chest and held my throat with his hands. Had it not been for a locust attack at that very moment, he would have killed me. He had completely descended into savagery, he was a monster. It made me realize what humans were capable doing, made me realize that some humans were more sadistic than the locust. Fuck, the locust didn't scare me in comparison to my own father. They were mindless creatures just following orders, but my father was hurting me in a way that no one else ever could. He was supposed to take care of me and protect me, but he did the complete opposite. He turned me into this creature that couldn't be with other humans for more than a second without wondering if they would turn into monsters too."

"I was sixteen when my brother, Deryk, came looking for me. He had almost finished his training and was basically a Gear. He went around asking hundreds of stranded if they knew where I was, and finally he found me. Me and my dad were in an abandoned garage when he found us. He walked in, holding his lancer, wearing civilian clothes. The stranded aren't exactly too fond of gears, so he didn't take any chances and left his armour back in Jacinto. But even with just the lancer, he looked like a proper Gear. I went over and hugged him as hard as I could, and he let go of me and saw that i had completely changed. I had a lot lost weight and was covered in bruises. He looked at my dad who started yelling at him, claiming he was a worthless piece of shit who didn't deserve to be a Gear. Then it all happened so fast, I still don't understand it. My dad punched him in the face and then kicked his leg. For an old guy with a limp, he was a natural born fighter. Deryk fell to the floor hard and my dad sat on his chest, just like he did with me, and pulled a knife out of his boot," Dani said as her hands shook violently. Dom knew where the story was going.

"He was going to kill him, fucking bastard was going to kill him," she hissed as a single tear fell from her hazel eyes, "I couldn't let him die, I just couldn't. I grabbed my brothers lancer, revved the chainsaw and then ..." Dom didn't need her to finish her sentence, he knew exactly what had happened.

The tears were streaming down her face as she said, "I killed my own father. I am a murderer. Every day I can hear him screaming as I put the chainsaw through his body. Deryk and I ranaway, without looking back at our dead father whose blood covered the floor. He never went back to the COG, so we stuck together for the next two years, before the.. before the locust.. the locust.." she was stuttering as she cried, wiping away her tears on the sleeve of her jacket.

Dom had heard enough, he wasn't going to put her through another set of traumatizing memories. He moves beside her on the bed a put his arms around her shoulders. To his surprise, she hugged him back, holding onto the sides of his shirt tightly as she cried into his chest. He placed one of his hands on her head and began rubbing her soft black hair. He was amazed by how much they has opened up to each other tonight, it was as if they had known each other for years. She had almost stopped crying and was slightly whimpering. He smelled her hair, and rubbed her back, the tight grip on his shirt loosening. She now had her hands on his back, and they slowly worked their way up to his neck. They broke apart from their embrace and stared at each other, their hearts beating faster with every moment they touched. They stared into each others eyes, overcome by the feelings that were growing inside of them. Don lowered his head toward Dani, and she leaned in for the kiss. Their lips touched and a flash of heat passed through their bodies. As their kiss became deeper, Dom's hands were entwined in her black hair, while Dani pulled him closer. The kiss was tender, yet exciting, and left them desiring more from each other.

While their lips remained locked, Dom had released his fingers from her and allowed them the trail down her neck and over her body. She unzipped her own jacket and broke apart from their kiss while she removed the bulky article of clothing. Dom had taken off his own shirt, exposing his tan and toned muscles to Dani, who felt suddenly insecure about her pale, and skinny body. She placed her hands on his muscular shoulders and noticed that his skin was radiating heat. She crawled over to him and sat on his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him with energy. His hands started at her waist before going under her shirt and travelling upwards, resting on her bare breasts. His warm touch was invigorating and allowed a burst of confidence to wash over Dani. She broke apart from their kiss and removed her shirt, exposing her skinny frame and small breasts. Dom began kissing her neck while she lightly pulled his hair. He gently kissed her collarbone and worked his way down her chest, stopping at the nipple of her right breast. He looked up at her eyes, and then took her nipple into his mouth. He started off gently, and gradually became more and more vigorous, before he was lathering her chest with his tongue. She moaned gently, a sound that left Dom craving more.

He wrapped her legs around his waist and stood up, lifting her with ease. He turned around and lay her back down onto the bed, careful with her fragile looking figure. He bent over her and began undoing the button of her pants while she lay back on the bed. He pulled them off slowly while she raised her head in anticipation. She sat up on the bed wearing only her underwear, giving him puppy dogs eyes that drove him crazy. She looked at his pants, before staring back at him with a raised eyebrow. Dom started undoing his belt while Dani crawled over to him and helped undo his pants, which then fell to the floor, leaving him in nothing but boxers. He bent down and kissed her again, with slightly more aggression this time and began pushing her back onto her back. He started kissing her stomach and trailing his tongue around her navel, going farther and farther downward until her reached her panties. He placed his hands on the sides of her thigh and worked them upwards until they were at the bottom of her panties. Very slowly and gently, he pulled them off of her, the anticipation practically killing her.

He threw the panties to the floor and marvelled at her naked body lying on the bed. All the flaws that he has seen in her before disappeared, leaving nothing but perfection. The heat of the moment had transformed her into a beautiful creature that Dom couldn't resist. Placing his hands on the inside of her knees, he spread her legs apart and began slowly trailing the inside of her legs with his tongue. When he reached her thighs, she shuddered at the tender touch, knowing what was soon to follow. He used two of his fingers to spread her lips, before fully embracing himself inside of her. He licked her gently, causing her body to shudder over and over again. Her back arched when his tongue hit the spot and she moaned uncontrollably, her chest moving up and down as she panted heavily. She pulled at his hair hard enough for him to raise his head and look at her in the eyes. She looked directly at his boxers, and then nodded. Smiling to himself, Dom quickly rid himself of the remaining piece of clothing and positioned himself on top of her. He wrapped her legs around him again, and place his elbows beside her head. He slowly entered her and rocked back, kissing her passionately as he did so. He was careful not to crush her skinny body that lay beneath him, he kept total control. Dom kept a rhythm going and watched as Dani climaxed, her back arching, causing him to do the same. He fell to the side of her as they both panted, and they smiled at each other. He pulled her sweaty body closer to him, and snuggled into his chest. Dom pulled the blankets over the two of them and kissed her head, while she slowly breathed in his arms. They embraced while they drifted into unconsciousness, not knowing what would await them in the morning.


	6. Chapter 6

**FLASHBACK/DREAM SEQUENCE - Dani is dreaming, but it is a flashback**

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><p>She was thrown to the dirty ground with immense force, her body aching and bloodied. The sounds of terrified screams and deafening screeches filled her ears, while the rusty smell of blood sickened her. She raised her head and allowed her hazel eyes to scan her surroundings. Hundreds of humans that were chained together looked at her with fear in their eyes, sympathizing for the young girl. The Locust that were keeping the humans captive all laughed menacingly, enjoying the pain the girl was enduring. She looked up and stared at her attacker in the eyes, finding no trace of kindness in his empty eyes. He was a Kantus, and his name was Repto. He was an authority figure among the Locust, one the Queen's guards, and he was one of the most brutal Locust in all of Sera. He wore red and black armour that made him stand out from the others. The young girl placed her hands on the floor of the Hollow, and tried to slowly raise her self up from the ground, unaware of the injuries she had sustained during time with the locust. Repto stood over and her kicked her back onto her stomach as she let out a blood curdling scream. Her ribs were definitely broken. Two Grenadiers came over the young girl and pinned her arms and legs to the ground with their own scaly hands, and Repto bent over a ripped her shirt off of her back. A drone came over to Repto and handed him a long whip with spikes on it. He cracked it in midair, allowing the sharp sound to echo throughout the hollow, followed by the fearful screams of the young girl. She tried her hardest to break free from the strong grips of the two locust, but it was impossible. She held her breath as Repto flicked the whip back, preparing to torture the young girl. After what seemed like an eternity, he brought the whip down on her back and excruciating pain filled Dani's body.<p>

The whip tore at the flesh of her back and Dani's blood soaked the ground. Her screams had turned into violent sobs, the sound of which made the Locust laugh harder. Every time the whip came into contact with her bare back, a human prisoner would scream, fearing they would be next. She closed her eyes and prayed that it would be over soon, that she would die and be freed from this grotesque torture. But death never came, and she was forced to endure pain at the hand of Repto. Her body went limp and the two drones pinning her down let go, and spoke to Repto. As the three locust communicated, Dani lowed her breathing and tried her hardest to appear dead. She knew there was no chance of survival in this hell, so she would try to runaway, knowing the locust would kill her instantly. Taking her chances, she used all of her remaining strength to lift her self off of the ground ignoring the searing pain, and stood on her two feet. Repto looked back her, unable to contain his amazement. He had never seen a single human stand up on their own after a whipping, especially someone her size. He walked over to her and pulled a Gorgon Pistol out of the side of his armour, and Dani closed her eyes tightly, accepting her fate.

Repto raised the pistol, and was taken by surprise when a human man ran toward the two of them and screamed, "NOOO!"

Dani opened her eyes and watched as her brother, Deryk, stood between her and Repto, the chain around his neck broken. The two siblings looked undeniably similar, both skinny, with black hair and hazel eyes, even the locust were able to make the connection between the two. Repto growled and stared at Deryk, unable to believe that a small human would stand up to him.

"Kill me instead," he said, as Dani began to protest, "Danielle, shut up! Kill me instead."

"No Deryk, go away!" she said in a hoarse voice, attempting to push her brother away. Her attempts failed and he stayed between the girl and the monster, refusing to watch his sister being killed in front of him.

Repto watched as the siblings bickered and a quiet, twisted laugh came from the back of his throat. He raised the pistol again, and struck Deryk across the face, watching as he fell to floor unconscious. Dani screamed and dropped to her knees, tears pouring out of her eyes. She was shaking uncontrollably, the wounds in her back causing her intense pain. She crawled over to he brother and placed her hand on his face, his cold touch frightening her. A large scaly arm went around her throat and cut off her air supply, leaving her to struggle for air. The world around her went blurry and soon enough, she was unconscious too.

* * *

><p>When she awoke, Dani was surrounded by pure darkness and silence. She wondered whether she was dead or alive, and if this was what happened after you die. She felt her surroundings, and realized she was not in the after life, but in a prison cell-like enclosure where Locust kept hostages. The smell was atrocious, Dani didn't want to think about what could be rotting away in here with her. Her body ached with every breath she took, her broken ribs refusing to cooperate. She wrapped her arms around her body and fantasized about breaking free from here with her brother by her side. A small smile crept up onto her face as she pictured her brother in his COG uniform. He was an excellent solider, capable of risking his life to save others, a true hero. When the Locust found Dani and Deryk, Deryk put up the biggest fight of his life and tried to get Dani to run to safety, but she was too late. They were captured as prisoner, and told they were going to be "processed," even thinking the word sent a shiver down her spine.<p>

The door of the cell opened and a large Locust holding a meat cleaver entered. Dani was terrified of the monstrous creature and kept her distance. The Butcher placed a large plate on the ground in front of her full of suspicious looking meat that smelled disgusting. The Butcher grunted and left the cell, darkness filling up the small space once again. At first she refused to go near the meat, planning to starve herself to death, but her stomach growled violently so she surrendered to her hunger. She felt around for the plate and picked up the meat, thankful for the darkness because she would not have to look at the food. Taking a large breath, she took a small bite of the meat and gagged. It was sour and tough, and left a horrible taste in her mouth. Dani knew that this would be the only nourishment that the Locust would provide, so she held her nose and ate the rest.

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><p>She has spent three weeks in the cell, alone in the darkness. Everyday the butcher would enter and provide her with Rockworm meat, which she would eat without hesitation. She had grown accustomed to the locust meat, even the smell didn't bother her anymore. Once a locust had even brought her a raggedy grey cloth that she used a shirt. Dani didn't get to move around a lot in the small space, so her ribs healed quickly, leaving only the wounds on her back, which still bled from time to time. But the excruciating pain was gone, along with her total resentment toward the Locust. She was beginning to empathize for the creatures and began looking forward to their visits, any form of contact was worshipped by her. On several occasions, she hallucinated about her father, which made her anger toward him grow. In her mind, he was torturing her from beyond the grave.<p>

One day, the door of her cell opened and Dani stood up expecting to see the Butcher. She was extremely confused when the high ranking Kantus, Repto entered her cell. She hadn't seen him since he tortured her, and a sense of anger washed over her. He was the Locust who had struck her brother, her brother who was trying to save her.

"Cooomeeee," he hissed in his deadly voice, and Dani obeyed knowing what the Kantus was capable of. She followed him out of her cell, stopping to stretch her legs that were extremely stiff. He waited patiently for the girl, which made Dani suspicious. Over the past three weeks, she had wondered why the Locust were keeping her alive, and now they were being patient with her. It made no sense to Dani.

She followed him toward a group a prisoners who stared curiously at Dani. They were chained together, bruised and frightened, much like she had been her first night in the Hollow. Her confusion became stronger, why did Repto bring her here? Repto went into the crowd of the prisoners and unchained a small girl, no older than three years old. Her mother screamed as her child was taken away from her and placed beside a Drone with a hammer burst. Repto the signalled toward a group a Drones, and then an anorexic looking man was thrown to the ground at Dani's feet. He was extremely skinny, bald and covered in scars an wounds. The man looked up at Dani, and her heart raced as she stared into her brothers eyes.

Repto handed her a Snub Pistol, stolen from the COG and hissed, "You kill him, or I kill both of them." He gestured toward Deryk and the little girl.

Dani let out a small whimper and legs began shaking as she was told of the ultimatum. Everything made sense now. The Locust were keeping her alive as part of sick game of Repto's. He saw how they would risk their lives for each other, and wanted to see how far he could push their love for one another. He wanted to turn her into a monster, just like him.

The tears began streaming down her face and she said, "I can't, I can't do it." Repto cocked his own pistol and pointed it toward the little girls head, and her mother howled.

"Please!" she begged, "Please! I'll do anything!"

"Danielle," Deryk whispered, holding onto his sisters ankle. She bent down and stared at her brother in the eyes, the beauty of the hazel colour making her feel slightly warm.

"Danielle, you have to do it," he said to his sister, "I'm going to die anyway, I would rather my last memory be of you, instead of some Locust bastard. Save the little girl."

"I can't do it Deryk.." she sobbed, "You're my brother, I can't ki-"

"Danielle!" he yelled cutting her off, "Do it!"

The Locust and the prisoners watched the two siblings have their moment together. Dani was crying her heart out as she ran her hand over brothers face, knowing what she would have to do. She stood up and pointed the pistol at her brother, her hand shaking.

"I love you," she sobbed.

He gave her his famous smirk and said, "I love you too."

"I'm so sorry," she cried, before pulling the trigger. His lifeless body lay limp on the floor, his grasp on her ankle gone. Dani collapsed, sobbing intensely , beside her brothers dead body, She buried her head in his chest, refusing to believe he was no longer in there.

"Deryk..." she whimpered refusing to let go of him. The silence that filled the hollow was disrupted by the deafening sound of a gun being fired. Dani shot her head up and felt the horror consume her when she saw the little girl fall to the ground, dead.

Repto stood over the body of the young girl and laughed at Dani who was attempting to control her growing rage. The mother of the girl had collapsed and was out cold, the other prisoners were trying to revive her. The tears had stopped flowing from her eyes, her anger was eating her alive. She stared back at Repto, the desire to spill his blood was overwhelming. She raised the snub pistol that was still in her hand and pointed it at Repto with a sick smile on her face. Aiming it at his face, she pulled the trigger.

Nothing.

She immediately felt like an idiot, they had only put one bullet in the gun, "Fuck," she said backing away from the angry Kantus. Repto held his pistol in his hand and walked over to Dani, striking her across the face and knocking her out.

* * *

><p>When she awoke, she was reminiscent of her first night with the Locust. She was angry and afraid, but this time she was determined. She wanted Repto dead, even if she lost her own life in the process. He was a demon among monsters, a predator who not only physically attacks his prey, but also psychology destroys them. She sat on the far side of the dark cell and watched the door, waiting for the butcher to come in with her daily meal. She planned to run past him and find Repto, expect she had no idea where Repto would be.<p>

After hours of planning how she would kill the Kantus leader, the door of the cell opened and light spilled into the dark enclosure. Dani stood up to greet the Butcher, but gasped when she saw Repto standing there, with the whip in his hands. He walked into the cell and grabbed her leg, pulling her roughly out of the cell. She kicked and screamed at the top of her lungs, but had no affect on the large creature. He threw her to the ground and got the whip ready. Thinking fast, Dani searched his body for a weak spot in his armour. Using all of her strength, she kicked him in the inner thigh beside his crotch, and he let out a high screech. She kicked him again, on his other inner thigh and watched as he fell to his knees, dropping the whip. Knowing she had a limited amount of time, Dani got to her feet and planned to run away, but a new idea came to her head. Acting quickly, Dani picked up the whip he had dropped and wrapped it around Repto's neck twice. The Kantus thrashed violently in front of her, so she placed her feet on his shoulders and pulled as hard as she could. He stood up and stumbled, his arms flailing, trying the get the girl off of his back. His vulnerability only made her pull on the whip harder, the spikes piercing his neck. The creature gasped for air, making absolutely no noise, while Dani's arms shook from the stress of the whip. Eventually, Repto stopped struggling and fell forward onto his knees. He clawed at the whip around his neck, before falling completely on his stomach, the armour clanging once it came into contact with the ground.

Dani didn't let go of the whip, fearing he would regain conscientiousness the moment she let go. She pulled for several minutes before finally letting go and accepting that the Kantus was dead. She panted heavily, completely taken back by the fact that the monstrous creature was simply flesh and blood, much like herself. The sound of footsteps made her jump and she turned around the see the Butcher holding her daily meal, utterly shocked at the sight of Repto's dead body. They stared at each other intently, before the Butcher moved to the left to reveal the door he came out of. Dani was unsure what was happening, so the Butcher gestured toward herself, and then toward the door. Her eyes widened at the realization that Butcher was helping her escape. She stepped toward to enormous locust who turned its back on her and opened the door. She followed the butcher through to a place in the hollow near the kitchen, where the wall had a number of holes larger enough to fit a person. Rockworm holes. The butcher pointed toward one the holes, and then stared at Dani. She looked at the dark hole and a shiver went down her back, it was sketchy, but she had no other choice. Getting down on her hands and knees, she stared into the dark space and swallowed hard.

"Thank you," she said to the Butcher, and then began crawling into the darkness. After spending three weeks alone in the dark, she was used to it. As she crawled, she thought about the Butcher who had helped her escape, she couldn't believe that locust were capable of acting that way. But the more she thought about it, she realized they were all just following orders, it was the Queen who had made them this way. It was the locust like Repto who weren't just following orders, but wanted to cause pain for their own entertainment that Dani resented.

She crawled for at least an hour, before seeing light at the end of the tunnel. She stuck her head out of the hole and looked around, no one was here. She crawled out of the tunnel and stood up, thankful to finally be able to stand on her two feet. The ground was slanted, so that meant that following the ground upwards would lead her somewhere. She walked as quietly as she could through the hollow and felt her heart leap when she saw light. Ignoring her attempts at silence, Dani ran as fast as she could toward the opening of the Hollow, finding herself amidst a group of stranded. They all stared at her, but she couldn't care less. The shining sun was warm and the freedom was intoxicating.


End file.
